GrassBase - The Online World Grass Flora

Descriptions

W.D. Clayton, M. Vorontsova, K.T. Harman & H. Williamson

© Copyright The Board of Trustees, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

Hordeum marinum

HABIT Annual; culms solitary, or caespitose. Culms 10–40 cm long; 3–4 -noded. Leaf-sheath oral hairs lacking. Leaf-sheath auricles absent, or falcate. Ligule an eciliate membrane; 0.5–1 mm long. Leaf-blades 1.5–8 cm long; 1–3.5 mm wide.

INFLORESCENCE Inflorescence composed of racemes.

Racemes 1; single; oblong, or ovate; bilateral; 2–6 cm long. Rhachis fragile at the nodes; flattened. Spikelet packing broadside to rhachis. Rhachis internodes oblong; falling with spikelet above.

Spikelets in threes. Fertile spikelets sessile; 1 in the cluster. Companion sterile spikelets pedicelled; 2 in the cluster. Pedicels oblong.

STERILE SPIKELETS Companion sterile spikelets well-developed; containing empty lemmas; lanceolate; dorsally compressed; 3–5 mm long; shorter than fertile; deciduous with the fertile. Companion sterile spikelet glumes markedly unequal in width; subulate; 8–26 mm long; winged on margins (upper glume); eciliate on margins. Companion sterile spikelet lemmas 1; exserted from glumes; 3–5 mm long; 1-awned; with 3–5 mm long awn.

FERTILE SPIKELETS Spikelets comprising 1 fertile florets; without rhachilla extension. Spikelets lanceolate; dorsally compressed; 6–8 mm long; falling entire; deciduous with accessory branch structures.

GLUMES Glumes collateral; similar; gaping. Lower glume subulate; 10–24 mm long; 1 length of upper glume. Lower glume margins eciliate. Upper glume subulate; 10–24 mm long. Upper glume margins eciliate.

FLORETS Fertile lemma ovate; 6–8 mm long; coriaceous; without keel; 5 -veined. Lemma surface smooth. Lemma apex acuminate; awned; 1 -awned. Principal lemma awn 10–24 mm long overall; limb scabrous.

FLOWER Anthers 3; 1.3–1.5 mm long. Ovary pubescent on apex.

FRUIT Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; ellipsoid; sulcate on hilar side; hairy at apex. Embryo 0.2 length of caryopsis. Hilum linear; 1 length of caryopsis.

DISTRIBUTION Europe: northern, central, southwestern, southeastern, and eastern. Africa: north, Macaronesia, and south. Asia-temperate: Soviet Middle Asia, Caucasus, western Asia, Arabia, and eastern Asia. Asia-tropical: India. Australasia: Australia and New Zealand. North America: western Canada, eastern Canada, northwest USA, northeast USA, southwest USA, and Mexico. South America: southern South America.

NOTES Triticeae. CEH.

Please cite this publication as detailed in How to Cite Version: 3rd February 2016.